Live Shows To Continue At Acorn With Extra Security

NIGHT LIFE

The Acorn Hotel, which was closed for several days after a shooting on April 17, will continue having live entertainment, but there will be beefed-up security at the Allentown nightspot.

"It (the shooting) was an unfortunate incident, but we believe it was isolated," Acorn manager Dennis Atiyeh said this week. "We worked really hard to retain our liquor license and we're going to overcome this and move forward."

Atiyeh said he has hired additional Allentown police and private guards for security at the club at 451 Lehigh St. and plans to keep two officers on duty until closing time. Atiyeh added that he intends to install more lighting in both the parking lot behind the club and on its front patio.

Three men were wounded when a man opened fire in the lobby of the hotel about 3:30 a.m. April 17. One was hit in the abdomen, another in the back and a third in the left arm. Two of the injured have been released, but the third remains in guarded condition at Lehigh Valley Hospital, Salisbury Township. Police have issued a warrant charging Orville Hugh Lawrence with attempted homicide. Lawrence's whereabouts are unknown.

The Acorn was open last Friday. Atiyeh wouldn't say how many people showed up, but he rescheduled a performance by blues band Little Red Rooster to June 10. Reggae band Kepa played there last Saturday night.

Fliers advertising this weekend's entertainment include the sentence, "Don't mind our security team: They are there for you."

State College-based blues band Queen Bee And The Blue Hornets and the Billy Hector Band are scheduled for tonight; reggae bands George Wesley and the Irietations, Kepa and Crisis are on the bill tomorrow.

Blue Hornets guitarist Mark Ross, who knew about the shooting, says he anticipates no problems. "We've played clubs where crazy things have happened. One place, a person was killed the night before, and people still came out."

After this weekend, Atiyeh said, the club's schedule of live entertainment will continue with one exception. "We're stopping the deejays," he said. Reggae deejays previously had spun dancehall-style records in the Acorn's large dining room, where Atiyeh said he plans to serve a bistro-style menu again. He said his decision was not motivated by the shooting; it only hastened his plans. "Starting in May I was going to discontinue them anyway. We're promoting live artists here, and I don't consider them (deejays) artists."

Atiyeh said the new bistro menu will be similar to the food at the Viennese Pastries Cafe and Restaurant in Bethlehem, which his family also owns.

"We're opening up the outdoor courtyard in front for people to enjoy the weather, and there's barbecue in the back this weekend," he said. "We feel comfortable now, to be honest -- but we want to be the safest place that you can possibly go in Allentown."

Lady plays the blues: Blues singer and harmonica player Colleen Gallagher will perform with her band Walk' n Blues at 9:30 p.m. tomorrow at the Weaversville Hotel near Northampton. This is the band's first appearance after several personnel changes, in effect for about a month. Gallagher, a graduate of Freedom High School, makes frequent guest appearances with blues guitarist Mike Dugan.